1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor laser apparatus and an optical apparatus, and more particularly, it relates to a semiconductor laser apparatus and an optical apparatus each comprising a plurality of semiconductor laser devices.
2. Description of the Background Art
A semiconductor laser apparatus comprising a plurality of semiconductor laser devices is known in general, as disclosed in International Patent Laying-Open No. WO2005/039001, for example.
International Patent Laying-Open No. WO2005/039001 discloses a two-beam semiconductor laser apparatus comprising a submount (base) and a two-wavelength semiconductor laser device fixed onto an upper surface of the submount on a front side such that a laser emitting facet faces the front side. In this semiconductor laser apparatus, a photodetector monitoring intensity of a laser beam is provided behind the two-wavelength semiconductor laser device on the submount. The two-wavelength semiconductor laser device is connected with a lead terminal through a wire bonded to a pad electrode arranged on the submount on a side of the two-wavelength semiconductor laser device.
In the two-beam semiconductor laser apparatus disclosed in International Patent Laying-Open No. WO2005/039001, a three-wavelength semiconductor laser device having three semiconductor laser devices arranged laterally, for example, is conceivably fixed onto the submount in order to further increase a light-emitting point. In this case, the central semiconductor laser device is conceivably connected to a lead terminal through a wire bonded to an electrode arranged behind the semiconductor laser device. However, the photodetector is provided behind the central semiconductor laser device, and hence a laser beam emitted from the central semiconductor laser device for monitoring may be blocked by the wire. Thus, the photodetector cannot accurately detect intensity of the laser beam from the central semiconductor laser device.